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Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Isabella Morganthal on I Dare You

Isabella, welcome to Homeschool Authors! Tell us a little bit about yourself.
Thank you for having me! I’m nineteen years old and I’ve been writing for ten years. Writing is my passion, but I also love music. I’m a drummer, singer, creative arts director, and blogger. I love Scripture memorization and participated in the National Bible Bee for five years. I love whipped cream, pizza, summer, and the ocean!

Everyone’s homeschooling experience is different. What do you think made yours unique?
Wow, I think the biggest reason my homeschooling experience was unique is that my mom was a single parent for the majority of the time that she homeschooled my twin sister and I. She had her own business, so the both of us got to learn a lot of things through that having to do with money, business, marketing, etc. My mom also made God and our Bible time the focal point of our homeschooling. We had our Bible time before anything else which allowed me to grow up with a love for God that has led me through every area of my life.

How did being homeschooled prepare you to write?
My mom focused our homeschooling on what we loved to do and she made it fun. As a young girl, she had me write a lot of creative stories for English and as I got older she had me write a lot of essays, which helped to deepen my love for writing. Because I was homeschooled I had the freedom to explore the things I was interested in and I loved. Homeschooling gave my mom the opportunity to help me grow in my interests and dreams.

What caused you to start writing?
For homeschool one day, my mom had us sit down at the kitchen counter and write a creative fiction story about anything we wanted to. I wrote a story about a little girl and her horse “Midnight.” When I wrote this story, I realized that I could create something that people might actually like to read. I loved the feeling of creating a story that expressed my own hopes and dreams. I decided from that time on that I wanted to write and give people the gift of a story that inspires them and leads them to Jesus.

What inspired I Dare You?
The inspiration behind my first published book “I Dare You: Finding Your Passion and Lighting Your World” is simply put: my relationship with Jesus. I’ve written several fiction books, so to write a non-fiction book was very different for me, yet I felt God’s leading to write this book. I knew it was what He wanted me to do. I’ve always wanted to inspire someone and encourage young people that they can make a difference in their world. I just never knew how I could do it. Then one day God said to me “If you could only ever write one more book for the world to see, what would you say?” So I started to write my book. I wrote with the intention of inspiring my generation. I poured my heart onto every page and wrote as if I were writing to my close friends.

Would you give us a synopsis?
“I Dare You: Finding Your Passion and Writing Your World” is my dare to young people to do something big with their lives. I dare them to not waste their lives on Snapchat, Instagram, or video games, but to instead put away the chains of apathy and stand up to make a difference in the world. I discuss major issues wrong in our world today such as abortion, human trafficking, and bullying. I dare the young people reading to rise up and do something about these issues, because they can make a difference. My book shares my own personal journey of how God called me to make a difference by serving Him one day in Uganda, and I share the lessons He taught me along the way. I encourage readers to push through fear, throw away the lies they believe, and have faith that nothing is impossible with God.

Who will enjoy I Dare You?
“I Dare You” was written specifically for ages 13-19, but many adults have also enjoyed reading it.

Do you plan to write more books?
Yes! I am always writing. :-) My second book released in April 2016 and my third book is going to be released this fall 2016, Lord willing.

Do you have any final thoughts?
I just want to encourage anyone reading this that you are never too old or too young to pursue the dreams God placed in your heart if you use them to glorify Him and make a difference for Him.
Thank you for having me do this interview!